Vehicles pulling trailers such as tractors/semi-trailer units employ air hoses and electrical conductors between the tractor and trailer units whereby the tractor may control the trailer brakes and operate the trailer lights. The pressurized hose and electrical conductors between the tractor and trailer must be long enough to accommodate movement between the vehicles during turning so as not to unduly tension the hose and conductors, and these flexible components are of a length considerably greater than the distance separating the tractor and trailer attachment points wherein the flexible component will be in the form of a downwardly extending loop or bend.
The electrical connections between a conventional tractor and trailer are of the push-to-connect type wherein the fitting mounted upon the tractor supported flexible conductor includes linear terminals, usually of the female type adapted to cooperate with a receptacle fixed upon the front of the trailer having male terminals. A relative linear movement between the fitting and receptacle will interconnect the terminals, and this linear movement is generally parallel to the longitudinal length of the vehicles.
When disconnecting the trailer from the tractor the operator is instructed to manually withdraw the flexible conductor fitting from the receptacle prior to releasing the trailer. However, it is not uncommon for the driver to either forget to disconnect the electrical components, or purposely not do so relying upon the tension within the flexible electrical conductor to pull its fitting from the receptacle. While such tensioning of the electrical conductor will usually successfully disconnect the fitting and receptacle, occasionally, due to binding or other reasons, the flexible conductor fitting and receptacle do not disconnect as the conductor is tensioned as the truck moves away from the trailer and in such instances severe damage to the wiring harness can result requiring several thousands of dollars in repair costs.
It is an object of the invention to provide an automatic electrical breakaway actuator for use with vehicles or the like employing a flexible conductor wherein automatic disconnection of the electrical components occurs prior to significant tension forces occurring within the flexible conductor.
Another object of the invention is to provide an automatic electrical breakaway actuator for electrical systems utilizing a flexible conductor wherein the breakaway actuator can be retrofitted to existing tractor/trailer units and is economical to manufacture and install.
An additional object of the invention is to provide a foolproof automatic electrical breakaway for separating electrical components which include a flexible conductor upon a pre-determined tension being produced within a lanyard operating electrical component release mechanism, the lanyard being of a length less than that of the flexible conductor wherein tension forces within the lanyard occur prior to the conductor being tensioned and preventing damage to the conductor and associated wiring harness.
In the practice of the invention an actuator body is attached to the electrical fitting associated with the tractor mounted flexible conductor. This fitting is adapted to be inserted into a receptacle mounted upon the front end of the trailer, and the fitting and receptacle utilize cooperating male and female terminals having a length substantially parallel to the length of the associated vehicle wherein a linear push-to-connect relative motion between the fitting and receptacle connects and disconnects the electrical terminals.
The actuator body includes a pair of linearly moveable plungers located upon opposite sides of the flexible conductor fitting which, in an extended position, engage the receptacle and will disconnect the electrical fitting attached to the body from the receptacle. In their retracted position the plungers clear the receptacle permitting the fitting and receptacle to be manually interconnected in the normal manner.
The plungers are operated by a U-shaped lever mounted upon the actuator body, and one end of a flexible lanyard is attached to the lever, and the other lanyard end is affixed to the vehicle to which the flexible conductor is attached.
The length of the lanyard is less than the length of the flexible conductor whereby the lanyard will be tensioned prior to significant tension forces being applied to the conductor as the tractor and trailer separate. Tensioning of the lanyard pivots the lever to extend the plungers and disconnect the fitting from the receptacle prior to conductor tensioning. As the actuator body is located adjacent the receptacle the extension of the plungers in a direction parallel to the length of the terminals separates the fitting and receptacle in a non-binding manner releasing the fitting from the receptacle and preventing damage to the flexible conductor or the associated wiring harness. The actuator in accord with the invention automatically operates without attention by the tractor driver and the cost of the actuator is significantly less than the cost of repairing even a single damaged wire harness.